To My Beloved
by Ijin Hime
Summary: CloTi Based on a true story. An abandoned child is set to live a new life, supposedly a better life. But,unexpectedly, ends up falling for the wrong guy. A forbidden love,jealousy,laughter and tears all in one. In the end, will she pull it off?
1. To My Beloved

**_To My Beloved..._**  
  
**_A/N:_** _I know I shouldn't be writing another story while I have tons that aren't even finished, but I just HAD to write this. This is based on a TRUE story and it happened to my grandparents. Since I never really got to know them seeing as how they passed away when I was only a baby, I decided I'd retell their sweet love story and dedicate it in the memory of them. My mom happened to be telling me about how they met and fell in love and it brought laughter and tears to my eyes because of how pure their love was. I'm usually not the type to write a REALLY corny story, but I'll do it for them . By the way, Tifa and Cloud will be taking over their rolls . . Yep, I chose the BEST COUPLE IN THE WORLD to portray them. I mean, what better couple is there (don't answer that Cloud/Aeris fans ")? So here we go! Please R&R! _

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**Chapter One: Six Too Many**_  
  
"But daddy! I don't want to go!! Why can't I stay here with you?!" A little girl was crying her large, bright, wine colored eyes out and holding on to her dad's shirt, begging him not to make her go.  
  
"Because I can't take care of you all! You and your 6 sisters and 1 brother need to be sent somewhere else where people can take better care of you!" Her dad tried to explain while placing a loving hand on her tear stained cheek.  
  
"But daddy, I DON'T WANT TO GO! I want to stay here with you!" The little saddened girl cried as she hugged her dad, sobbing into his shirt.  
  
"Honey, think of it this way...You'll go to a woman, a principal of a school, who doesn't have children of her own and loves kids! She can help you study, teach you how to take care of yourself and she can feed you properly! All these things, I can't do for all 7 of you!" Her dad tried his best to explain to his miserable little 4 year old.  
  
"But daddy..." the sweet little girl's voice echoed as she tried her best to stop the tears from flowing.  
  
"Shhh...no more! You're going no matter what! I promise I'll call and make sure everything is alright! This woman is very strict and she's a lovely woman who wants children! She'll take care of you until your ready to work and then you'll come back to me." Her dad finalized it and picked the 4 year old girl up and walked towards the car where the principal was standing.  
  
She was a highly sophisticated looking woman, yet her gentle smile seemed rather calm and caring. She took the 4 year old girl, who was still sobbing and screaming for her daddy, and wiped her sweaty little forehead as she gently tried to calm her down. The woman wore a fancy and rather expensive looking blue suit and her straight brown hair was tied neatly into a bun.  
  
"Oh, it's alright child. I promise I'll take good care of you. I have a lollipop; would you like to have it?" She asked in a sweet and gentle tone.  
  
The girl stopped sobbing for a while and took the red beautiful sweet candy as she popped it into her mouth. She figured it was hopeless as the woman placed her into her beautiful fancy car. Her tear stained pale cheeks were drying up as the woman took a tissue and wiped the child's face.  
  
As the car started up, her bright wine colored eyes looked longingly back at where her father was standing and she was tempted to jump out and run into his arms. Her father gave her one last smile and a quick wave as he finally turned around and walked off into his small and cozy house. The car drove off into the distance and the little girl began to sob quietly yet again. This time, the principal took her small and fragile body and placed her soft head on her lap.  
  
"Shh, Tifa. It's alright. You can go to sleep since it's going to be a long drive." The woman said as she petted the gorgeous little Tifa's head.

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A/N: Well, it's just the beginning and the first chapter, so that's why it's not all that long. Please review and tell me what you think! I'd greatly appreciate it! Thanks! 


	2. Beautiful Colors

_To My Beloved..._

**A/N:** _Forgive me my fellow reviewers! I know I haven't updated in AGES! But it's such a long story! Anyways, I was really thinking of making another fic but I figured I should finish at least ONE of my old ones...Anyways; here is the next chapter to this true love story. Enjoy!_

_In loving memory of my dear grandparents..._

**_Chapter Two: Beautiful Colors..._**

"Welcome Home..." Mrs. Strife cooed softly with her generous smile spread across her gorgeous pale complexion. With that, the beautiful white door opened gently to give off the warm aura that was swirling inside the large, white Victorian house. Tifa, her large eyes blurry, tired and aching from her light sobs earlier, looked inside the house, a little frightened of what was inside. Mrs. Strife than gave her a light push and she had finally entered the house. Her tiny feet, in her school girl shoes, stood there, not making a move. The house seemed to be filled with warmth, love and compassion as the scene gave her a calming, tranquil feeling. Her fears and all her worries and even her father had finally dispersed from her mind and thoughts of what would become of her in this lovely house flourished in her mind and heart.

"First, I believe its best if I introduce you to the family as you will also be apart of it. Come along, no need to be shy..." Mrs. Strife said gently, stepping forward in her fancy high heels and walking down the hallway towards the cozy family room that had a warm, blazing fire crackling in the background.

Hesitantly, Tifa began to follow, her eyes nervously looking over her new inhabitance. There were books lying on the clean and polished wooden tables and plenty of ancient antiques decorated the room. Tifa seemed to be completely mesmerized, never having seen such a beautiful setting in her life. She had been living in probably the worst side of town in probably the most run down house on the block. But her house, no matter how run down, was the coziest there because of the wonderful family she had lived in it with.

She remembered the silent evenings when her dad would come home and they would all sit around the small and blazing fireplace while he would tell stories of their mother. Each would sit there patiently and listen to his stories intently, forgetting about their small empty stomachs which would be grumbling from the lack of food. They would forget about all the kids that picked on them everyday because they didn't have any proper clothes or shoes to wear. They were just happy to be in their father's presence and know that they DID have a mother that loved them very dearly...

"CLOUD!!! Come down here!! Our guest has arrived!" Mrs. Strife yelled up the beautiful spiral staircase while Tifa stood there, starring down at her own small feet, too nervous and shy to soon have to look at the young boy she would have to live with....

"I'm coming!! No need to yell, mother!" A voice that seemed to be drawing nearer, stated down the marble spiral shaped staircase. Little stumbling footsteps could be heard running down the stairs.

"Cloud! Did I not tell you to comb your hair?! Why don't you ever listen to me! Your hair looks so messy like that! Coming down here and looking like that in front of a guest!" His mother argued, trying to fix up his golden blonde messy spiked hair.

"MOM! Don't you know?! It's SUPPOSED to look messy! That's the style!" The boy cried, pushing his mother's hand out of his hair.

"Okay, enough of this! Introduce yourself to our guest! Where are you manners?" His mother said impatiently.

"Yeah, yeah...Hello, nice to meet you. The name is Cloud and if I catch you in my room, I'll have no choice but to destroy you!" He smiled slyly at his smart remark and threat.

Tifa, already afraid of this _Cloud_, continued to look at her feet, afraid to look up and afraid of disobeying any of his wishes.

"CLOUD!!! APOLOGIZE THIS INSTANT! YOU DO NOT SAY SUCH THINGS TO A GUEST!!!" His mother cried furiously, throwing a nasty glare at her obnoxious son.

Cloud began his fit of laughter and was apparently enjoying torturing the girl already. He tried to look at her face, but it was hidden behind her gorgeous flowing fudge locks.

"I'm just kidding! Hey...are you listening to me? It was only a joke...Hey! Look at me!" Cloud seemed to be getting a bit impatient and annoyed.

"COME ON! It's a JUST a joke! Don't take it so harsh! Come on...let's see that pretty face...." Cloud tried his best to make Tifa feel a bit better since he felt a tad bit guilty about his earlier remark.

Slowly and hesitantly, Tifa raised her pale face and her hair fell out of her eyes. She slowly saw the boy who had just teased her. She finally met his face and then his eyes...His eyes...the color of the ocean. Never had she seen a boy with eyes of that color. His hair was also unfamiliar to her...Locks as golden as the radiating sun...

He looked at her nervously and smiled one of his obnoxious smiles. Her eyes seemed to glow and he had never laid his eyes upon eyes of that color...the color was a deep crimson, like a fresh pool of blood...They matched the complexion of her pale and youthful face. The two locked eyes, each of them investigating the other, so unfamiliar of this new person and of each owns world...

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A/N: I know it's short, but this is just the very beginning. Besides, it's not going to be based on their kid era. I might do another chapter of their childhood days but I'm not too sure...anyways, review and tell me what you think! Worth continuing or is it trash? REVIEW!!! 


	3. Fitting In

_**-To My Beloved-**_

**A/N: **_Well, looks like I've gotten the motivation to continue this story. I must give my reviewers the most credit! Seeing you guys enjoy it so much really makes me want to write more to keep you happy! Thank you guys! I don't think I would have gotten the motivation to continue to write this story were it not for your reviews! So, here's chapter 3! I've tried to make it a bit longer than the other chapters too. _

**-Fitting In-**

"So Tifa, how do you like it here?" Mrs. Strife whispered, her delicate rosy lips hovering over the fine china cup that was held gently in her feminine hands.

"I...like it..." Tifa whimpered, staring at the way the elegant woman drank her tea.

She found it strange how her fingers were placed around the cup. Then again, this new family of hers did many strange things she wasn't accustomed to. For instance, Tifa had no clue why the elegant woman owned so many pairs of shoes. She was the only older woman in the house anyways. Why did she need so many?

At Tifa's reply, the woman countered with a bright smile and a light nod of agreement as she lowered her lips towards the cup once more. Tifa felt like she was sinking in the large couch she was sitting in. Never having heard of leather let alone felt it, she had to keep moving to avoid having her fragile body sink into the couch. Mrs. Strife couldn't help but lighten up at this and thought it was rather cute of Tifa.

"Well it's good to hear that. Oh, I can't wait until I go get you some adorable little dresses. I think you'd look magnificent. No more rags and hand-me-downs for you now! You're a very pretty girl and deserve to be dolled up a bit!" Mrs. Strife squealed as images of long, beautiful, designer dresses floated around in her head.

Tifa looked at her curiously and wondered why she would ever need dresses. She was plenty comfortable in her older sister's baggy t-shirts and ripped jeans.

"But I'm comfortable in these..." Tifa tried to explain, averting her eyes to the fine carpet that lay under the soles of her bare and small feet.

"But, honey...those aren't...err...very ladylike. Young ladies don't wear ripped jeans and rags! They wear beautiful long flowing dresses!" Mrs. Strife argued, her fierce blue eyes gazing at her tenderly.

Tifa said nothing, but kept her eyes on the floor, her little fingers fiddling with her long, flowing, silky brown locks.

"Okay..." She whispered, not wanting to disobey her lovely new guardian.

"That's a good girl! I'm sure you'll love your new wardrobe! Now go call Cloud and his friends down for dinner please!" Mrs. Strife chirped as she happily got up and made her way towards the kitchen.

At this, Tifa bolted. _He _was always a strange one to Tifa. She never quite understood his cocky, arrogant nature. Yet these qualities made her fill up with emotions that were unknown to her. She let out a deep sigh and began to make her weary trip up the marble, spiral staircase. She could hear the sounds of him jeering along with his friends while he played his videogames.

As she quietly stood outside his pearl white door, she paused and took in a deep, long breath. _This _was going to be hard. She swiftly lifted her small and fragile hand up and clenched it into a tiny fist then began to knock gently on the door. She waited for a few seconds and the next thing she knew, the door swung open and she was revealed to the loud music coming from the TV.

There was Cloud, his ice blue eyes glued onto the TV screen and his fingers moving swiftly over the small controller that was clutched tightly in his hands. Jumping up and down fiercely on his bed were Barret and Zack; each had grabbed a pillowcase and were trying desperately to knock one another off the bed. The one who had opened the door was Johnny; probably the biggest jerk of all of Cloud's friends.

Tifa hated him. He was always trying to push her around and hurt her and he would always be the first to throw her a smart remark about her clothes, family or looks. Yet, he stood in front of her in his usual mocking stance, bright green eyes gazing fiercely into her blood-shot ones and a fierce growling smirk spread across his defined face. Bright red hair fell down from the top of his head while more of it was situated in spikes at the very top. Unfortunately for Tifa, he was also a head or two taller than her, thus making her very uncomfortable.

"Well, well, well! If it isn't the poor maid!" Johnny announced loudly, his green eyes scanning the innocent girl that stood before him.

Tifa said nothing but only threw him a menacing glare, trying her best to squish her way into the room. However, this was a bit impossible since Johnny seemed to take up all the space in the doorway. Tifa huffed venomously and continued to glare.

"Look, we don't play with girls! So get out and play with your rag dolls...if you even have any!" Johnny chuckled to himself, about to close the door on Tifa.

Tifa looked down; her fists clenched tightly, and let out a small and quiet whisper while she tried her best to fight back the urge of punching Johnny's perfect face in.

"I'm not here...to play with you..." She spat, anger compiling on her delicate features.

"So what the heck do you want from us! Can't you see we're a bit busy, ugly!" Johnny exclaimed, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Mrs. Strife said to come downstairs for dinner..." Tifa whispered again, her eyes unmoving from the ground.

"Oh...Hey Cloud! Little messenger girl said your mom wants us down for dinner!" Johnny yelled, tilting his head back to look at the dumbfounded blonde.

"Tell her I'll be down in a sec! I just gotta beat the stuffing out of this boss! Curse you, Seymour!" Cloud shouted frantically, his azure eyes ever unmoving from the TV screen.

"You heard the man, now get lost, booger face!" Johnny seethed and slammed the door hard in her face.

Tifa stood there for a minute, slightly stunned and confused. Yet those feelings disappeared as anger and frustration took over her body. Images of pushing Johnny off a cliff tranquilized her and she nimbly began making her way down the marble spiral staircase.

"Well...where are they! Dinner is ready!" Mrs. Strife stood in front of the staircase, her hands on her hips and a worried expression spread across her face.

"Umm...Cloud said he'd come down after he beat his videogame." Tifa stuttered, too afraid to look at the blonde beauty in front of her.

"Oh, that spoiled little brat! If he takes any longer, the food is gonna be cold! Tell him to get his butt down here RIGHT NOW!" With that, Mrs. Strife stormed off back into the kitchen, muttering under her breath.

Tifa let out an exasperated sigh and once again climbed up those long, dreary stairs towards Cloud's room where she would await to be tortured by Johnny. Again, she repeated her previous movements and waited for the door to swing open to reveal Johnny's ugly head. And sure enough, there it was.

"Cloud, tell your dog to go play somewhere else!" Johnny shouted, chuckling loudly while he stared at Tifa with his emerald green eyes.

"Johnny, you know we don't have a dog!" Cloud could be heard behind him as he was putting away his games.

"Haha...yeah you do! Your rag maid!" Johnny chirped, his laughter ringing in Tifa's ears.

Cloud just stared at him blankly, without any expression at all. Tifa was beginning to get rather impatient and angry and she didn't doubt that Mrs. Strife was feeling the same way.

"Whatever. Anyways, we're coming down now so tell my mom to stop worrying." Cloud cooed, trying to get Zack and Jacob to stop jumping on his bed.

Tifa nodded and finally walked away, knowing those green emeralds were still hunting down her every move. Making her way back down for the second time, she saw an impatient and infuriated Mrs. Strife waiting at the bottom of the staircase.

"Umm, he said he's coming down right now..." Tifa shyly spoke, still unable to gaze into her fierce, ice blue eyes.

"Very well...Tifa, go into the dining room and pick yourself a seat...we're going to eat soon." Mrs. Strife concluded as Tifa nodded and disappeared down the hall.

It wasn't very long before voices could be heard heading towards where Mrs. Strife was standing. Sure enough, the whole gang had showed up, all of which seemed to be in a heated argument about...something. Mrs. Strife stood tall and threw a dangerous glare at Cloud which caused him to quiet down almost instantly. However, the others were too busy biting each other's heads off to notice Mrs. Strife frowning down upon them. Cloud then nudged Johnny hard in the stomach which caused him to be quiet and look up. At this, Mrs. Strife was finally brought to all of their attention and each one threw on an innocent, sweet smile.

Mrs. Strife said absolutely nothing and turned on her heel, heading towards the dining room where Tifa sat patiently waiting. Cloud and his friends merely followed in a straight line, all of them completely silent. All that could be heard was Mrs. Strife's designer heels clicking against the marble floor. Each one had bent their heads, as if to be ashamed of a guilty crime they had made. As soon as Tifa heard the clicking of those familiar, fine high heels, she looked up from where she was sitting and saw them all enter the dining table.

Tifa didn't really care about why they were acting so strangely. She was more interested in finding out who would sit beside her. Crossing her tiny fingers closely together and hoping that Johnny wasn't going to be one of them, she waited. Sure enough, Cloud had plopped down on the seat next to her and Barret on the other side. Tifa let out a heavy sigh of relief and suddenly felt more comfortable. It wasn't very long before the chef had brought in a whole bunch of delicacies that Tifa would probably have never seen, let alone tasted had she stayed with her father.

A bunch of food was plopped onto each child's platter as they all feasted their hungry eyes on the food in front of them. Mrs. Strife took a seat beside Cloud and watched, in mild disgust, each child (except for Tifa) stuffing their faces insanely and rapidly.

"Boys, have some manners! After all I need to tell you all something..." Mrs. Strife spoke, glaring at her own son while he looked up at her, a piece of tomato glued onto his chin.

"Listen, I know you may not know Tifa very well but it's very mean to leave her out all the time! From now on, you are to include her in any games you play! How would you feel if you were her!" Mrs. Strife stated cleanly, making Tifa stare at her blankly.

"WHAT! But she's a girl! An ugly one too! Can't she go...clean the house or something!" Johnny was the first to react to Mrs. Strife's statement.

"Johnny, I will NOT tolerate your nasty comments at this table! If I hear you say something cruel to Tifa once more, I will make sure your mother is very well aware of it!" Mrs. Strife's voice rose, anger blossoming in her eyes.

"Mom...it is sort of strange for a girl to play with us. I mean, what we do is for BOYS! What are we supposed to do with her? Play with dolls?" Cloud commented, wiping away the tomato with a napkin.

"I honestly don't care what you do as long as you are fair and nice to Tifa! I didn't ask you whether you'd like it! It's not an option, Cloud! You WILL include Tifa in your activities or I'll have to tell Uncle Cid about this...and I'm sure you wouldn't want that, now would you!" At this comment, Cloud's face seemed to be drained of all color and his large, blue eyes seemed to widen in fear.

"U-u-uncle Cid! Okay! OKAY! We'll play with her!" Cloud cried defensively while Tifa continued to stare in utter shock and silence.

"That's a good boy...I'm glad I won't have to resort to such a thing!" Mrs. Strife explained happily, petting her son's blonde mat of hair.

The rest of the boys remained silent as they ate away at their dinner and this time, in a much more mannerly condition. Tifa, on the other hand, had never been so confused in her life. She wondered why they all seemed to quiet down when it came to the name 'Uncle Cid'. In Tifa's mind, she really didn't care if she didn't get to play with Cloud. She actually thought it was better because then she wouldn't have to ever face Johnny. Now, all she could do is think of ways to prevent all the grief and torture that awaited her. The more she thought, the more she dreaded it!

"Don't worry Tifa...if Johnny, bugs ya, just tell me and Zack...We'll fix him up for ya!" Barret whispered, smiling delicately at Tifa before he took a long drink from his apple juice.

Tifa was stunned for a moment...Did Barret just say he'd help her? Was he being NICE to her? Tifa felt a little strange...yet a sense of comfort overfilled her soul and she couldn't help but smile. It was the first time she'd smiled since the day she had arrived at the Strife Mansion...maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all...

End of Chapter Three

FITTING IN-

**A/N: **_Well, that concludes chapter 3! Once again, thanks for all the reviews! I'll be sure to try and make the other chapters even longer! Read and review, please! Every single one counts! Chapter Four coming soon! _


	4. Knight in Shining Tinfoil

-**To My Beloved-**

**A/N:**_I know what you're thinking; holy shit she's updating! Okay, so I don't really want to rant but I got my internet back and I can now continue writing! I have made the decision not to post anything new what so ever as tempting as it may get until I finish at least one damn story! I also want to apologize to every single reviewer who has been waiting for me to return and update! I am very, truly, deeply, sorry xD. I must have been an extreme pain to put up with but thank you for it anyways even though you hate me right now. I also would like to clear up some writing errors in previous "nooby" chapters._

_Jacob_

_Mrs. Strife is a blonde_

_Ages are as follows:_

_Tifa: 7-10 years old in the 'younger years' chapters_

_Cloud: 9-11 in the 'younger years' chapters_

_Barret: 10-12 in the 'younger years' chapters_

_Zack: 9-11 in the 'younger years' chapters_

_Johnny: 9-11 in the 'younger years' chapters_

_When I finish this story, I will go back and edit those three crappy chapters. Sorry for the rant!  
_

**Chapter Four -Knight in Shining Tinfoil-**

She didn't want to join them. As a matter of fact, she was dreading the very thought of it. Exactly ten months had passed by since the day she had first arrived at the Strife mansion and she could still recall the great amount of nervousness she had felt from the moment she had stepped inside. She could also recall the very first time she had laid eyes upon Cloud. She had been so curious and so intent on figuring out exactly how he worked. Actually, she had no idea how any boy worked and now that she was suddenly thrown into a group of them, she was worried. She didn't know how to act around them since just the simple fact that she was a girl was enough for Johnny to pick on her and for the rest of them to feel uncomfortable around her.

Johnny…He was as cold and mean to her as the first time he met her. He constantly pulled her hair, scribbled on her drawings, called her names, destroyed her dolls, stole her toys, drew on her shoes, and put tin foil in her food. There were many other things he enjoyed doing to her but he had to be sneaky since Barret had kept his promise. So now, Johnny simply bothered her when Barret didn't show up or when they were alone.

However, for some strange reason, she always found her eyes traveling towards Cloud, as if she almost expected him to react; to help her and tell Johnny to leave her alone. Each time, she looked away disappointed though since Cloud either didn't notice at all or simply stared on blankly at both of them. She needed to stop thinking she could rely on him since he barely talked to her at all anymore. The more they grew up, the more distant he became to her but it may have also had to do with the fact that she was a girl and had other things to do while he was the boy who did whatever he liked to do.

She sighed and quickly followed Mrs. Strife down the corridor, her fancy shoes clicking delicately against the tiled floor. She was told to join Cloud and his gang during the fancy dinner party his mother was throwing. It was strictly for grown ups but Mrs. Strife insisted that she wanted the kids to be there just because she did not believe in dumping children in the hands of someone besides herself. She was a principal at a high school after all and only wanted the best for her one and only son.

"Okay Tifa, we will call you all downstairs when it's time to eat. So just stay in the room unless you need something or one of those ruthless boys is being mean to you, alright? You come and tell me and I'll be sure to take care of the matter."

Tifa nodded her head politely as Mrs. Strife had bent down to straighten out a few loose strands of chocolate crisp hair. She also ironed out the puffy red velvet skirt with her hands as Tifa stood still and allowed her to do so. After everything had been in place and Tifa began to look like a real life porcelain doll, Mrs. Strife smiled at her generously and then stood up to knock loudly on Cloud's bedroom door.

"Who is it?"

Mrs. Strife sighed as Cloud's voice, as well as the noises coming from an obvious videogame. were heard coming from inside the room.

"It's Santa Claus, Cloud! Now stop being silly and open this door! How many times have I told you not to lock it?!"

Tifa tried hard to suppress a giggle by placing her hand over her mouth as she heard Cloud groan and his friends laugh out loud. A small clicking sound was heard and the door creaked open to reveal a very embarrassed Cloud who refused to look up at his mother's face.

"Okay, Tifa is going to be joining you today until you are all called down for dinner. Make sure you let her play with you otherwise she'll let me know and you'll be in big trouble, mister!"

Cloud's mom gave him a stern look and he finally looked up at her, glaring at her sarcastically. She then turned her attention to Tifa and nudged her forward into Cloud's bedroom. Cloud opened his door further so that she could step inside and as soon as she did, she was confronted by Johnny's obnoxious, ugly face. Tifa cringed involuntarily and stepped back as soon as her eyes met with his disgusting, evil grin.

"Look at that, fresh meat! Fresh, frilly meat!" Johnny laughed at his own joke while Barret and Zack looked on at him with careful eyes. Cloud, yet again, paid no heed to anything that was happening as he was too absorbed in his videogames.

Tifa glared at him venomously, practically allowing a hiss to escape her lips and she only wished he had heard it so that he may have cowered away in fear.

"Johnny, you start that kinda stuff again and I'm gonna pummel you into the wall! Just leave the girl alone already!" Barret's voice came booming in Johnny's and Tifa's direction which caused both of them to turn and stare in awe.

"Oh come on! It was just a harmless joke! Besides, she's so fun to tease! Just look at how angry she gets! It's almost like her underwear is on fire!" Johnny let out a loud laugh which no one else pursued. Instead, Barret gave him a stern look; and then smiled mischievously.

"You know…for a girl you say you hate so much, why do you love talking about her or bugging her? It's almost as if…Johnny's got some kind of crush on Tifa!" Barret and Zack both turned and smiled deviously while Johnny's face began to match the color of his hair.

Tifa's face, on the other hand, had turned ghostly pale and her jaw had dropped. Her mind reeled in the possibility, especially after Johnny's fit of denial following the comment as well as the intense blush that had risen to his cheeks.

"W-what?! Just what the hell are you talking about?! Of course I don't have a crush on the little bugger! She's hideous; a street kid, abandoned by her broke father who couldn't afford taking care of her! She is way below my standards! I'd rather date the mole growing on her old father's back!"

Tifa seethed with anger and she had to bite her lip and clutch her fists to keep herself from pouncing on the cocky red head. She was tempted to strangle him to death or beat him with some kind of heavy and harmful object with spikes. However, she knew, as Mrs. Strife had taught her that a lady must have class and class required patience and tranquility. In other words, Tifa had to keep her cool otherwise she'd be the one getting in trouble. Just as she was about to simply comment on how she planned on letting Mrs. Strife know about this, a voice besides Barret's was heard shattering the silence in the room.

"Johnny, shut the hell up. Even a mole on Seymour's ass crack wouldn't wanna date you…so don't flatter yourself."

Silence.

Everyone in the room turned to stare at the unmoving bright blonde who had his eyes still glued to the T.V. screen, mashing the controller buttons like an insomniac. It almost seemed like he hadn't said anything at all but…Barret had still been thinking of a comeback and Zack preferred to stay out of these kinds of fights. Tifa blinked once or twice and Johnny stayed silent, his mouth open, unable to grasp the insult processed from Cloud.

"Wow…now that was a good one, Cloud! Can I ask where it came from?" Barret made his way towards Cloud to give him a high-five but Cloud paid no attention to him whatsoever. Johnny however, did manage to find his tongue again.

"That was totally uncalled for! And since when do you defend the little brat?! I thought you hated her too! You're the one who kept ranting to me on how annoying she was and how she's made herself all comfortable at your parents expense cause her father's a broke jerk! So you, of all people, should keep your mouth shut Cloud!" Johnny pointed an accusing finger in Cloud's direction as he shook with ferocity.

Cloud had stopped mashing the controller and a "GAME OVER" was flashing on the screen. He had stopped moving completely. Once again, silence echoed in the room and Tifa, who had said nothing this whole time, felt like she wanted to go somewhere far away and cry. Who were they to judge her poor father who only wanted what was best for his family? He couldn't help that his job didn't pay him enough to take care of her…it was never his fault. She never, not even once, blamed him for anything and here were these snotty rich kids saying how much of a nuisance she was to them.

Feeling a mix of anger and sadness, she exited the room and slammed the door shut behind her. After allowing a single tear to roll down her pale cheek, she sprinted to her room where she locked the door and cried on her bed. She cried for losing her father, for losing her beloved mother, for losing her brothers and sisters, for being thrown into a world she did not belong in, for meeting the nastiest little boys and most of all for her poor father, being judged by such snobby people.

"Kids! It's time for dinner! Come down and eat!"

She refused to move but she did hear the door next to hers creak open, followed by a bunch of feet stomping past her room. A few seconds later, when the noise had faded away, she heard a light and nervous knock on her door. She sat up, alert and curious at whom it could be. If it was Johnny, she decided she was going to punch his face in and not care that it wasn't a ladylike thing to do. Enough was enough. Bravely, she hopped off the edge of her bed and walked towards her door, her tears dried and now filled with revenge. Carefully, she turned the doorknob and swung the door open to reveal the person behind it. Her eyes widened and she was at a loss for words.

"Um, hey Tifa…"

Cloud stood in front of her, vibrant and lively blue eyes meeting with her red tinted brown ones. Her mouth remained wide open and her body did not move as she was in complete disbelief.

"I was just going to call you down for dinner. Mom said to hurry up cause the food's getting cold."

Tifa nodded and walked out of her room, closing the door behind her. Cloud had already started down the stairs and Tifa followed, not quite sure on what exactly to say to him. She didn't know whether to hate him, hit him, tackle him or ignore him but at the moment, silence provided her with a good chance to think upon it.

When they had reached the end of the flight of stairs, Mrs. Strife was seen bustling about with food and cutlery balancing in her arms. She seemed to be under a lot of stress, clearly agitated with the poor job her servants were doing. Tifa stared for a brief few seconds and when she turned to look at Cloud, he had bolted towards the table where all his friends were sitting and chatting while watching cartoons on the flat screen T.V.

She sighed and made her way towards an empty seat which was, unfortunately for her, next to Johnny. A wide variety of dishes were placed on the glass table in front of them and a plate of food was placed carefully in front of each seat. She took her seat and when she did, Johnny had stopped giggling about whatever it was he found funny and stared at her with a sneer on his face. She glared straight back, looking like she was just about ready to strangle him.

"Don't give me that dirty look! You don't need to make yourself look uglier! It's practically impossible." Johnny snorted, the only one in the room laughing at the stupid joke.

"Sorry Johnny, but I don't think I'm related to you in any way to have become as ugly as you."

There was a burst of laughter now coming from every one in the room besides Johnny and even Tifa couldn't help but smirk in satisfaction as she grabbed her plate and began eating like a lady.

"Well…well…well you smell funny! So there!"

Tifa looked up before putting the spoonful of food in her mouth and gave Johnny a quizzical look. He stared back through his stuttering and choked up some obviously forced laughs.

"Real mature, Johnny. It's obvious you spend all your nights trying hard to think of insults since the ones you make up on the spot are just terrible."

The room erupted into laughter again and Tifa couldn't help but notice Cloud was also laughing. She noticed he was clutching his stomach in merriment and she felt a faint blush rise to her cheeks although she couldn't understand why. She quickly brushed it off and averted her gaze. Finally, she put the spoonful of food into her mouth and began to chew on it. It wasn't until she had noticed that Johnny was smirking, even after all the humiliation, that she felt her teeth crunch painfully against a piece of tinfoil in her mouth. The pain seared through her tooth and she spat the food out instantly. It was Tifa's terrible luck that at that exact instant, Mrs. Strife had entered the room to witness her unladylike behavior.

"Good gracious God, Tifa! What on earth are you doing?! That is the last thing a lady should do! That's why I never bothered telling you since I figured it was just common sense! Ladies do NOT spit out their food! I believe you'll be waking up early next morning for a lengthy lecture, young lady." With that, Mrs. Strife strutted away and if she had seemed agitated before, she only seemed to become more so after this particular event.

Johnny then burst out laughing, clutching his stomach in glee that his plan had been overworked to perfection. Tifa glared at him but found it difficult because of the tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks. She didn't want to seem like a crybaby, but she couldn't help it. She didn't like disappointing people, especially Mrs. Strife and now thanks to Johnny, Mrs. Strife probably hated her.

"Mom! Johnny put tinfoil in Tifa's food! He's been doing it for the longest time! He keeps sneaking it from the kitchen, that's why Tifa spat it out! If you don't believe me, come to check her plate."

Tifa froze, watching as Mrs. Strife stepped back into the room with a curious look on her face. The tears had fallen by now and they streaked her pale face but she was now so stunned that she forgot about crying. Johnny had turned around to hit Cloud hard on the arm but Cloud just hit him back, aggravated. Barret and Zack smirked triumphantly; proud that Johnny was going to get it now for sure.

"Now, Cloud…why would you say that? Why would Johnny do something so cruel?"

"Like I said, mom…Look for yourself. You'll find large chunks of tinfoil in there and I don't know about you, but biting on that stuff gives me a nasty toothache. If I were Tifa, I'd have killed him by now."

Sure enough, with a doubtful look on her face, Mrs. Strife came over to investigate Tifa's plate. She used the spoon to flip some of the rice around and lifted it up when she came across a shiny, large piece of foil. Her eyebrows arched upwards and when she dropped the spoon back to the plate, her sharp blue eyes refocused upon Johnny.

"Johnny, you naughty little brat! Just wait until your mother hears about this!" With that, Mrs. Strife stomped out of the room, her heels clicking ferociously against the floor of the mansion. Tifa turned her gaze to see the expressions of the others only to notice tears brimming around Johnny's eyes and Cloud looking angrily at him.

"Cloud you jerk! I hate you! I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you! WAIT MRS. STRIFE! PLEASE DON'T TELL MY MOTHER! I'LL DO ANYTHING!!!!"

With that, Johnny leaped off the couch, tears running down his face like a faucet and started wailing and chasing after Mrs. Strife.

Cloud's gaze then met up with Tifa's and he winked at her, a smile playing carefully among his lips. Tifa stared on in shock and disbelief. It was so sudden, this change in him. She wondered if it was what Johnny had said earlier that had made him decide to help her. Or maybe it was pity and he just wanted to redeem himself in her eyes. Whatever it was, it had made Tifa feel a whole lot better and for that, she was grateful. Maybe, in the years to come, she'd grow closer to him and accept him as an older brother. Tonight may not have been perfect, but it was a start and she was willing to take whatever she could get out of all this.

**End of Chapter Four**

**A/N:**_Hope you enjoyed chapter four! Please give me some feedback! All reviews are welcomed, except for flames. Constructive criticism only please. Look forward to Chapter Five some time soon._

**KT**


	5. Good Girls and Bad Habits

**A/N: **_Okay, since I don't feel like rewriting at the moment and since this story is quite possibly the best written one I've got, I'm just going to go ahead and continue it. Thanks for all the positive reviews and all of those reviewers who hung in there. It really means a lot to me. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!_

**Chapter Five:**

**Good Girls and B****ad Habits**

"Phew, I believe that's the last of it."

Tifa stood still for the first time that day and wiped her dirty hands on her already dirty baggy T-shirt. Although her hair had been tied back into a frizzy bun, her bangs were now glued to her forehead from all the sweat that had been forming there. Carefully, she placed the broom back into the closet and admired her handiwork. She smiled gleefully; proud as she spotted the sparkle and shine of the entire grand hall that led to the bedrooms.

Finally, she fell upon the floor, accepting the cool feel of the tiles beneath her and the luxury of not being on her feet for once. Her baggy blue shorts had gathered quite a few dust particles and had stains from the chemical cleaners that Tifa had accidentally spilled on occasion. Her usually nice clean legs were now looking and feeling disgusting and Tifa convinced herself that it would be best not to look at the soles of her bare feet.

Usually, Mrs. Strife would forbid Tifa to ever dress or look the way she did at this time, but since the only 'man' in the house was out, she was able to get away with it. Hell, she even managed to get away without having to wear a bra, considering they bothered her whenever she had to clean. It was moments like these that she was ever so thankful for, embracing the silence that filled the entire now clean mansion.

Although Tifa was not too fond of cleaning anything, much less the entire Strife household (which was more like a castle than a house in her eyes), it was the simple fact that she finally had some freedom while she did it and that no one was looking at her or judging her; especially a particular obnoxious blonde.

"Tifa, dear! Please come downstairs!"

Tifa heard Mrs. Strife's soft voice echo up from the spiral marble staircase and she quickly picked herself up and dashed away. The last time her beloved and strict guardian had called on her and she hadn't heard or had ignored her, hell had broken loose. Tifa cringed at the mere memory that had caused her nightmares for days on end, not to mention extreme amounts of teasing from the pathetic teenage boy living with her and all his rude friends.

"Coming, Mrs. Strife!"

She cried as her feet went flailing down the marble steps, their tapping echoing softly in the empty hall. When she was only a few more stairs away from standing before the high class lady, she stopped, wheezing for air and turning a bright red when she saw the man calmly conversing with her.

"Oh, Cid! Don't be silly! A boarding school will do no good for Cloud at this age! He'll be just as rowdy, if not more. Besides, how can I part with my one and only son?!"

Tifa stared on at the man, mouth open. Standing not much taller than his sister, he had short platinum blonde hair (a trademark it seemed), deep blue eyes and a few wrinkle lines around his mouth and on his forehead, distorting the usually flawless tanned skin. He had a pack of cigarettes tucked away in his breast pocket of the blue collared shirt he wore and he was currently giving little sis an angry look. Tifa's heart froze; the dreaded Uncle Cid.

Cloud Strife, the only man in the family ever since Mr. Strife passed away, was a wild typical seventeen year old boy who was sexually active, a drunk, a smoker and a party craver. Not to mention he was doing terrible at school; hardly passing anything besides math. He seemed to be excellent at it. Tifa had only seen Uncle Cid a few times and those times were either at family events or when 'Cloudy boy' needed his ass kicked into gear. If there was anyone who could straighten Cloud out and scare the shit out of him and his friends, it was Uncle Cid.

Tifa snickered; it was always memorable when Uncle Cid visited. For the few days that he stayed at the mansion, Tifa was safe and untouchable. A simple threat of telling was enough to frighten the boys. The first time she had threatened them, they had made the mistake of believing she wouldn't. They soon learned never to test her again.

"Izzy, don't get your panties in a bunch! If the boy goes to an all boys school or a boarding school, you wouldn't need me to visit every so often just to give him a good lesson about life. Do you know how much I have to travel just to get all the way up here to this ridiculously huge shithole because you can't control a teenage scumbag?! Let me tell you, it ain't cheap!"

"Good morning, Uncle!"

Tifa cried cheerily before Mrs. Strife was about to explode. Tifa's queue was when Mrs. Strife pale face turned a menacing bright red and the dreaded finger had come up, ready to point and jab at her older brother's chest.

So into the argument, neither had noticed her existence until she hopped down the stairs and gave Cid a big teddy bear hug, him almost squeezing her guts out. He lifted her up as he hugged her, muscled arms squeezing the smaller girl's body.

"Well if it isn't Tifa! How've ya been girl? Has my sister been brainwashing you too much again?"

Tifa fought back a giggle and instead gave a heavy hearted smile as Uncle Cid patted her messy dark hair. From the corner of her eye, she could see Mrs. Strife fuming and if possible, smoke escaping from her ears.

"Yep, she did. Too late to save you know I guess. If only her brainwashing skills worked on that spoiled brat of a son she's got."

"That is it, Cid! First of all, in my household, you will call me either Isabella or Mrs. Strife! Not Izzy! You will also refrain from using that vile language in this house and change your language to a more appropriate and more human like tongue! And as long as you are under my roof, you will not call my son any names, for that is abuse and I do not tolerate abuse or bullying! Is that understood?!"

There was a silence and about a few seconds before they both started up a loud menacing argument with much screaming, Tifa had stealthily slipped away towards the house entrance, sighing with relief. Then the door slammed behind her and all that relief was gone.

"Woah...what the hell are you wearing?"

She turned around; knowing full well who the deep male voice belonged to. She looked at the tall spiky headed blonde in front of her whose eyes seemed to be staring at her...t-shirt? No, that couldn't be right.

"Stop staring, you pervert!"

Tifa hugged her arms around her chest, a strange heat rising to her cheeks and colouring them red. Cloud snickered and looked up to met her blazing eyes, fire meeting ice. Tifa looked away, trying to recover from the massive blush before she heard the door creak open again.

"Cloud, what's all that yelling?"

The yelling had indeed escalated and Tifa saw Cloud's face turn pale as Cid's thunderous voice boomed down the hallway. She also saw a tall woman step through the doorway, long auburn hair spilling down in waves all the way to her lower back. Her eyes were a deep and bright green and her skin was like porcelain, her body slim and curved in all the right places. Tifa couldn't close her mouth when the older woman stepped inside, big eyes looking innocently at their surroundings. This must have been that model girlfriend Cloud had that everyone had been talking about. She was a foreign beauty from another country. At first, Tifa didn't believe the stories; a twenty four year old woman who was a gorgeous foreign model was Cloud's girlfriend. Anyone with enough sense would doubt that story. But now Tifa was a believer.

"H-Hi..."

Tifa muttered softly before the woman noticed her standing still in front of her. When heavy black lashes blinked in confusion, Tifa mustered a smile as the yelling in the background seemed to calm down and Cloud had started panicking. She was greeted with a warm smile afterwards as well and Cloud had interrupted it by grabbing her and panicking.

"Well, well, if it isn't my favourite little nephew. How's it going Cloud? Oooooh, and he brought a cutie home today!"

Cid's voice came in sarcastically from behind Tifa and caused both her and Cloud to turn around in shock.

"Mooooooooooooooooooom!!! You didn't tell me he was going to be here today!! MOM!"

Tifa laughed and Cid had a cocky smile run itself across his lips. Cloud's girlfriend stood behind him, too stunned to move, her famous green eyes wide in bewilderment.

"Come now, aren't you happy to see me, Cloudy boy? Haven't you missed your dear Uncle Cid? After all, it's been quite a few months since your seventeenth birthday."

Tifa wasn't sure but she could have almost thought she saw an evil gleam shining in Cid's dark blue eyes.

"And it's also not polite to leave such a beautiful young lady behind you without introducing her to the family. What's your name, cutie?"

Cloud seemed to be frozen in place while his girlfriend stood behind him trying to find the words as a blush crept to her pale cheeks.

"My name is Aerith, sir. Aerith Gainsborough."

The girl had a soft and sweet voice, almost just as innocent as her complexion. Tifa didn't understand why such an exotic beauty was even doing with Cloud, quite possibly the most immature teenage boy alive.

"Cid! I'm warning you! I did not ask you to come over here for this!"

Mrs. Strife came storming in behind Cid looking more furious then ever and Cloud took this opportunity to grab Aerith's arm and make a run for it to the safety of his room. He pushed past Tifa, almost causing her to fall down and dragged a very stunned Aerith away with him. Tifa caught her balance and muttered a curse under her breath so that Mrs. Strife didn't hear her.

"Cloudy boy, where the heck do you think you're going?! We aren't done talking over here!"

Cid cried out after the blonde, ignoring Mrs. Strife and her very angry expressions. Tifa didn't know how he did it; she hated those expressions and they used to scare her when she was younger.

"Cid, enough! Leave them alone! You can lecture him after his girlfriend leaves...he deserves that much respect. Besides, she's such a good girl and I really don't want Cloud to lose her."

Tifa fought back a snort of laughter; poor Mrs. Strife still believed that her son was a good boy. Cid turned around after Cloud and Aerith had both disappeared up the stairs and stared hard at Tifa, ignoring his little sister again. His eyes immediately looked down at her chest, widening all of a sudden.

"My, my...Never knew you grew up so quickly Tifa."

Tifa stared at first, dumbfounded, but after getting the gist, covered her chest hastily and turned a deep crimson that she could feel tears well up.

"Never knew you weren't a little girl anymore. Damn, this girl is going to be attracting all the boys... Where'd those knockers come from?"

That was it. Tifa ran upstairs, covering her chest as she ran and brushing past a ready to explode Mrs. Strife. She could hear Cid's laughter echo behind her even by the time she reached the hall where she had just finished cleaning. That was when she picked up the familiar scent of something that was not supposed to be there. She stopped, tears frozen in her eyes and cheeks still coloured red. Smoke. Cigarette smoke. Coming from Cloud's room. She took a few careful steps towards the slightly open door, the voices growing louder as she moved closer.

"Are you sure you're allowed to smoke in the house?"

"Yeah, as long as no one finds out...Besides, I don't want to just smoke. I didn't bring you over here for that."

Whatever had gone away from Tifa's previous blush came back in full force when she saw Cloud's eager and tanned hand unbutton the woman's shirt without so much of a care. They were both on his bed, cigarettes sitting in the ashtray, smoke escaping into the air. Cloud leaned in for a kiss and her hands made her way into his hair while he continued to dispose of her button up shirt, revealing a bright pink bra that cupped a set of petite breasts.

Tifa had never been inside of Cloud's room but when she saw it, there were drug needles, pill bottles, cigarette packs, condom packs and beer bottles lying everywhere. Not to mention, a half naked girl sitting on his bed. She was in shock; she knew he had been bad, but never this bad. Her mind was still processing these facts before she noticed she was still staring at them even when she had started to remove his pants.

Tifa bolted to her room, cheeks burning and tears falling down. For some reason, they wouldn't stop even if she wasn't sobbing or anything. They just kept coming so she had no choice that night but to stay locked up in her room, head stuffed into her pillow until she would fall asleep and they would finally disappear. Why was she hurting?

End of Chapter Five

**A/N: **_Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter despite that it was somewhat short, depressing and a bit dirty. Wait up for the next chapter and reviews are nice. Constructive criticism only please!_


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